Feedback: A Help or Hindrance?

Posted: 08/02/2016 by
Cox Purtell

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string(4995) "The reputation of a recruiter has always been heavily dependent on our ability to fulfil the needs of both a candidate and a client – and successfully make a placement.
As simple as this may sound, this ‘success rate’ against which recruiters are so stringently measured can involve weeks and weeks of endless sourcing, head hunting and networking to discover even a fraction of the ‘crème de la crème’ that the client is so desperately seeking.
Not to mention the hard graft the recruiter has already invested in just getting the job on – persistent contact, meeting after meeting, a job brief and remuneration package… followed by an updated job brief and remuneration package (of which sometimes the latter may not necessarily work to the recruiter’s advantage).
It is accurate to say that at this stage in the recruitment process, a consultant has dedicated a significant amount of time in understanding everything about the client – the history of the business, the future of the company, the culture, the organisational structure, the good, the bad and the ugly… you get the idea.
In light of, often, very particular (and sometimes extreme) criteria determined by the client, candidates have been identified, examined and probed by the middle men, thereby revealing a shortlist of exceptional talent awaiting their fate. As interviews commence, the consultant breathes a sigh of relief and assumed accomplishment ‘I’ve got this one in the bag’.
Sound too good to be true? Unfortunately in some cases, this is just the beginning.
So here is my personal experience that would strongly suggest you never ‘have it in the bag’ so easily, and fortunately I was able to share the burden with my colleague who was working on this particular role with me at the time.
Our client was incredibly particular in their requirements and liked to ‘change the goalposts’ at every hurdle, so you can imagine our delight when we had successfully achieved all of the above, and interviews began to take place. The T’s were crossed and I’s were dotted, and we started to enjoy the interim of what we assumed would result in a long awaited placement.
How wrong we were.
In the days preceding the interviews we struggled to obtain a decision or even feedback regarding the candidates, and after a prolonged silence the client responded with the following of several generic comments…
“They don’t really seem to fit.”
“It doesn’t feel right.”
“There is something about them we are just not sure about.”
To a recruiter, these sorts of comments are soul destroying, and safe to say, we were extremely disappointed. There was no specific feedback on each candidate (which might I add, we had repeatedly tried to obtain), and not even an ounce of ‘constructive criticism’ for Loretta and I to improve on moving forward. Just a vague explanation and a resounding ‘no’.
Where had this all gone wrong?
As we began to investigate further, compiling detailed and structured feedback from the individuals that were interviewed, we were stunned by what we discovered. Candidates had arrived at the interviews, only to be informed they were meeting with completely different representatives agreed with ourselves and the client.
Furthermore, the company representatives had little or no knowledge of each candidate, and were not even equipped with resumes or profiles for each individual, all of which had already been provided to the client as part of the shortlist process. For one interviewee in particular, the interviewer actually deflected from the position in question and attempted to present her with a completely different opportunity!
This experience came at a cost in so many ways to name but a few – an unsatisfied client, demoralised candidates, and an unsuccessful recruiter. All of which could have been avoided by improved feedback techniques and better communication skills.
It’s frightening to learn how situations like this are still very common, as it can be so detrimental to all involved. Limited contact between a client and a recruiter stimulates a breakdown in communication and provokes an increased lack of honesty and trust in a working relationship that is paramount in the recruitment process.
Unclear or generic feedback poses damaging effects to candidates who are actively seeking new opportunities and can really discourage the talent of today from making their next career move – and effectively your next ‘walking placement’.
Feedback really is the future, as without it you only have fickle clients, temperamental candidates and a wavering reputation.
Recruiters: Have you experienced a similar situation to this? I’d love to hear from you, please reply in the comments section below."
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http://www.coxpurtell.com.au/blog/a-good-recruiter-thinks-long-term/"
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The reputation of a recruiter has always been heavily dependent on our ability to fulfil the needs of both a candidate and a client – and successfully make a placement.

As simple as this may sound, this ‘success rate’ against which recruiters are so stringently measured can involve weeks and weeks of endless sourcing, head hunting and networking to discover even a fraction of the ‘crème de la crème’ that the client is so desperately seeking.

Not to mention the hard graft the recruiter has already invested in just getting the job on – persistent contact, meeting after meeting, a job brief and remuneration package… followed by an updated job brief and remuneration package (of which sometimes the latter may not necessarily work to the recruiter’s advantage).

It is accurate to say that at this stage in the recruitment process, a consultant has dedicated a significant amount of time in understanding everything about the client – the history of the business, the future of the company, the culture, the organisational structure, the good, the bad and the ugly… you get the idea.

In light of, often, very particular (and sometimes extreme) criteria determined by the client, candidates have been identified, examined and probed by the middle men, thereby revealing a shortlist of exceptional talent awaiting their fate. As interviews commence, the consultant breathes a sigh of relief and assumed accomplishment ‘I’ve got this one in the bag’.

Sound too good to be true? Unfortunately in some cases, this is just the beginning.

So here is my personal experience that would strongly suggest you never ‘have it in the bag’ so easily, and fortunately I was able to share the burden with my colleague who was working on this particular role with me at the time.

Our client was incredibly particular in their requirements and liked to ‘change the goalposts’ at every hurdle, so you can imagine our delight when we had successfully achieved all of the above, and interviews began to take place. The T’s were crossed and I’s were dotted, and we started to enjoy the interim of what we assumed would result in a long awaited placement.

How wrong we were.

In the days preceding the interviews we struggled to obtain a decision or even feedback regarding the candidates, and after a prolonged silence the client responded with the following of several generic comments…

“They don’t really seem to fit.”

“It doesn’t feel right.”

“There is something about them we are just not sure about.”

To a recruiter, these sorts of comments are soul destroying, and safe to say, we were extremely disappointed. There was no specific feedback on each candidate (which might I add, we had repeatedly tried to obtain), and not even an ounce of ‘constructive criticism’ for Loretta and I to improve on moving forward. Just a vague explanation and a resounding ‘no’.

Where had this all gone wrong?

As we began to investigate further, compiling detailed and structured feedback from the individuals that were interviewed, we were stunned by what we discovered. Candidates had arrived at the interviews, only to be informed they were meeting with completely different representatives agreed with ourselves and the client.

Furthermore, the company representatives had little or no knowledge of each candidate, and were not even equipped with resumes or profiles for each individual, all of which had already been provided to the client as part of the shortlist process. For one interviewee in particular, the interviewer actually deflected from the position in question and attempted to present her with a completely different opportunity!

This experience came at a cost in so many ways to name but a few – an unsatisfied client, demoralised candidates, and an unsuccessful recruiter. All of which could have been avoided by improved feedback techniques and better communication skills.

It’s frightening to learn how situations like this are still very common, as it can be so detrimental to all involved. Limited contact between a client and a recruiter stimulates a breakdown in communication and provokes an increased lack of honesty and trust in a working relationship that is paramount in the recruitment process.

Unclear or generic feedback poses damaging effects to candidates who are actively seeking new opportunities and can really discourage the talent of today from making their next career move – and effectively your next ‘walking placement’.

Feedback really is the future, as without it you only have fickle clients, temperamental candidates and a wavering reputation.

Recruiters: Have you experienced a similar situation to this? I’d love to hear from you, please reply in the comments section below.